Woman Held for Aiding Ferry Owner's Escape

A woman in her 30s has been arrested on charges of helping Yoo Byung-eon, the de facto owner of ferry operator Chonghaejin Marine, evade capture.

The woman, identified by her surname Shin, is the sixth person to be arrested for aiding Yoo's flight. Prosecutors have vowed to arrest anyone who helps the fugitive.

Police distribute pictures of Yoo Byung-eon (top) and his eldest son Dae-gyun in various disguises on Sunday. /Courtesy of the National Police Agency

The Incheon District Prosecutors' Office said Monday it arrested Shin on Sunday night. She had allegedly been holed up with Yoo until recently at a private house near Suncheon, South Jeolla Province.

Prosecutors declined to reveal the identity of the woman and her relationship with Yoo. A spokesman said, "We can't discuss details of the investigation and the matter involves privacy."

One follower of a cult led by Yoo said Shin is a U.S. citizen who helped him organize his photographic work. Prosecutors are questioning Shin to determine Yoo's escape route.

They believe Yoo is still hiding near Suncheon and are focusing their search in the region. Prosecution sources said he was probably unable to travel far from where Shin was arrested.

"If we fail to arrest him over the next one to two days, he could end up evading capture for some time," a prosecution official admitted. But he added the chances that Yoo fled the country by ship are slim given that ports have been tightly controlled for some time.

However, prosecutors are not ruling out that Yoo fled to another part of the country and are conducting simultaneous searches in multiple locations. They are keeping their eye on offices and agricultural co-ops in Gyeongsang provinces and South Jeolla Province connected to Yoo or his family.

A prosecution official pleaded for information on Yoo's whereabouts and vowed to protect the identities of informants. The official said the number of anonymous tips has increased since the bounty on Yoo's head was raised to W500 million (US$1=W1,024), but few were credible.

The reward for information leading the arrest of Yoo's eldest son Dae-gyun was also raised from W30 million to W100 million.

Meanwhile, Yoo's second son Hyuk-ki (42), who fled to the U.S. shortly after the ferry disaster on April 16, has reportedly been stopped from flying to France.

Members of Yoo's cult in a news conference in front of the sect's compound south of Seoul on Monday vowed to protect him from arrest. Earlier, followers claimed that Yoo is not their leader.

But a prosecution source said there are signs of a sharp division among followers, with a majority shocked by the corruption allegations and supporting Yoo's arrest, while only a small handful of fanatical supporters are rallying around him.

Some sources said Yoo's followers are trying to throw investigators off Yoo's trail by feeding them false information.

* Pursuant to an order by the Press Arbitration Commission, we have been asked to publish the following statement from the Evangelical Baptist Church (EBC).

After the April 16, 2014 Sewol ferry tragedy, the media published a flood of indiscriminate articles regarding the EBC (also known as "Guwonpa" in Korean) and Mr. Yoo Byung-eun. Due to the immense volume of articles, it is impossible to correct and counter every single one. Therefore, in agreement with the EBC and the surviving family of Mr. Yoo Byung-eun, we are publishing the following combined corrections and Official Statement.

1. In regards to the claims that Mr. Yoo Byung-eun was the owner of the Sewol ferry vessel and the owner and Chief Executive Officer of Chonghaejin Marine Ltd ("Chonghaejin") and its affiliated companies

The majority of the media reported that, as the owner of the Sewol ferry, Mr. Yoo Byung-eun directly managed Chonghaejin and its affiliated companies and that he used operating funds for personal purposes. However, Mr. Yoo retired from the executive board in 1997. Additionally, he did not own any shares in the noted companies, nor had he managed operations, nor used the operating funds for personal reasons. He was not the ship owner of Sewol ferry, nor the Chief Executive Officer of Chonghaejin. As such, he had not provided any directives in regards to the overloading of Sewol ferry or renovation of the ferry (e.g. expansion of the cabins and cargo area).

2. In regards to the allegations of Mr. Yoo Byung-eun's acquisition of assets in other people's names and misappropriation of offerings made to the EBC

The majority of the media reported that Mr. Yoo Byung-eun was a wealthy billionaire who owned real estate properties, including Geumsuwon, both in Korea and abroad under other people's names and that he diverted the tithes and offerings made to the EBC to an illicit fund and expanded his businesses. The EBC has confirmed that reports of his wealth incorrectly included real estate properties owned by farming associations, which had been established by church members. Thus, these reported properties were not held by Mr. Yoo Byung-eun in another person's name, but are owned by the noted farming associations. Additionally, Mr. Yoo did not embezzle from the EBC nor did he expand his businesses by diverting tithes or offerings of the pertaining church and its members into an illicit fund.

3. In regards to the reports related to Mr. Yoo Byung-eun’s position within the EBC

The EBC has stated that Mr. Yoo Byung-eun was not a religious sect leader. Although he was ordained as a pastor in the 1970s by missionaries at the Far East Broadcasting Company, he did not act as a pastor. There is no pastor in the EBC, since it is a congregation of laymen. It was also verified that Mr. Yoo Byung-eun did not participate in the process when the EBC was established in 1981, nor had he been revered as a religious sect leader or been made into a God-like figure by the pertaining church or its members.

4. In regards to reports that the EBC is a cult and that it has false doctrines

The majority of the media reported that the EBC is a religious cult and that it preaches doctrines that are not consistent with Christianity. There are certain churches in Korea that call the EBC a cult, solely based on differences between their and the EBC's doctrines. However, the EBC has affirmed its belief in the Bible, the Trinity, and in Jesus' conception by the Holy Spirit, His birth, death, and resurrection. The EBC does not worship a particular individual as a religious sect leader or preach any doctrine that contradicts the Bible.

5. In regards to reports of Mr. Yoo Byung-eun's attempt to flee the country by ship, reports of his seeking asylum and reports of his possession of firearms

The majority of the media reported that Mr. Yoo Byung-eun attempted to flee the country by ship, that he requested asylum in several countries but was rejected, and that he possessed firearms to protect himself. The prosecutors hastily announced without confirming the facts that Mr. Yoo Byung-eun attempted to seek asylum. However, two months later on August 18, the prosecutors revised their statement noting that "upon investigation into the identity of the caller, a person with no relation to the Salvation Group had placed a prank call." In addition, there was no evidence of any attempt by Mr. Yoo to flee the country. It has also been confirmed that the firearms alleged to be in his possession were collectibles. Furthermore, not only were they collectibles that could not actually be used, they were also not in Mr. Yoo’s possession while he was fleeing.

6. In regards to reports alleging that Mr. Yoo Byung-eun held photography exhibitions at the world's top museums by donating funds and that he forced sales of his artworks

The artwork of Ahae (Mr. Yoo Byung-eun) were examined and authorized for exhibitions at renowned museums and exhibition sites in the United States and Europe by their screening committees. The exhibitions were unrelated to donations, and it was confirmed that there was no causal relationship between Ahae's donation history and the exhibitions. Moreover, Mr. Yoo's photography exhibitions were authorized by the committees after the directors of the respective museums had acknowledged the artistic value of Ahae's works and subsequently proposed hosting the exhibitions. It has been confirmed that the exhibitions were not a result of Mr. Yoo's patronage or donation. Additionally, the above museums have verified that an exhibition can never be authorized unless the artistic value of an artist's works is recognized by the screening committee, irrespective of the amount of money an artist donates. Additionally, it has been confirmed that Mr. Yoo did not force sales of his artworks.

7. In regards to reports on allegations about the EBC’s and Mr. Yoo Byung-eun's links to the Odaeyang incident and their relationship with the Fifth Republic of Korea

Some news articles delivered the impression that the EBC and Mr. Yoo Byung-eun were behind the Odaeyang mass suicide incident. Some also reported that Mr. Yoo Byung-eun had been able to rapidly grow the Semo Group in the 1980s (e.g. securing the business rights to operate the Han River Ferry Cruise) by using a connection with Mr. Chun Kyung-hwan and a close relationship with the former President Chun Doo-hwan's Fifth Republic of Korea. However, the Odaeyang mass suicide incident was thoroughly investigated by the prosecution and the police three times -- in 1987, 1989, and 1991. All three investigations concluded that the EBC and Mr. Yoo Byung-eun had no connection to the incident. Also, neither Mr. Yoo Byung-eun nor the EBC had any collusive ties with the Fifth Republic of Korea. This was all verified in the official document of the Incheon District Prosecutors' Office, issued on May 21, 2014.

Lastly, the Evangelical Baptist Church has released the following statement to the media:

We sincerely request of the press to serve the public's right to know with objective and balanced reports, guarding against biased arguments from its interviewees, all while ensuring to fulfill its duty and responsibility to create no victim from such reporting. We ask the press to reflect upon its manner of reporting on the Sewol ferry accident. Without waiting for the truth to be revealed through the completion of the investigative and judicial process, the reporting largely focused on releasing exclusive and sensational news reports, which led to misleading the public and essentially a trial in the court of public opinion. We also ask the press to avoid causing any compromise to the democratic principles of a constitutional state and to prudently take strict precautions against those forces that aim to take advantage of this period of heartbreak for this nation in order to advance their own position and authority.